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“The Blessings Of Death”
Categories: OLD TESTAMENTDoes Job 3:18-19 mean that that the prisoners are all dead and resting peacefully where they do not have to hear the voice of evil any more, and the rich and poor are together where they are free from their master?Sincerely,
Say What?
Dear Say What,
Yes, Job 3:18-19 is a continuation of Job’s theme for that chapter. Job is extolling how much he wishes he had never been born (Job 3:3). He is in such complete physical agony that he welcomes the thought of death (Job 2:7-8). Furthermore, Job has also lost his wealth and his children (Job 1:14-19). In Job 3:17-19, he is explaining the comfort that is found in death. Wicked people no longer can harm us once we die, and we have rest from the toil of this life (Job 3:17). Slaves are no longer burdened by the commands of their earthly masters – they are free (Job 3:18). All is equal in death; the rich and the poor, the small and the great, in death, are judged by who they are, not by how much they have.
